Magnetic resonance imaging-based relationships between neck muscle cross-sectional area and neck circumference for adults and children

BackgroundComputer models and human surrogates used to study the forces and motion of the human neck under various loading conditions are based solely on adult data. Pediatric computer models and dummy surrogates used to improve the safety of children could be improved with the inclusion of previously unavailable pediatric muscle data.MethodsMeasurements of neck circumference and neck muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) were taken from ten 50th percentile adult male and ten 10-year old male volunteer subjects. Muscle cross-sectional areas were calculated from magnetic resonance images of axial cross-sections of the neck.ResultsNeck muscle cross-sectional area was calculated for six muscles/muscle groups. A power-law regression analysis was used to describe the relationship between neck circumference and neck muscle cross-sectional area.ConclusionsThe cross-sectional area and the power-law functions determined by the data in this study provide a means of calculating muscle cross-sectional area for young children, where such data are currently unavailable. This will provide an opportunity to develop more representative pediatric neck models.